Could an all-mobile bank work? Luvleen Sidhu's job is to find out

“The research is undeniable that mobile is truly revolutionizing our world,” says Luvleen Sidhu, chief strategy officer, BankMobile. “However the problem is banks are slow to adopt to this trend and because of this they have lost loyal customers, especially millennials.”

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As the newly named chief strategy officer for BankMobile, Luvleen Sidhu has a difficult task ahead of her: win over the tech-savvy millennials that could make the venture into mobile-only banking a runaway success.

Good thing Sidhu, 28 — the daughter of Jay Sidhu, chief executive of BankMobile parent Customers Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq: CUBI) — is a member of the millennial generation herself. That gives her a front-row seat to understanding what millennials, those born between 1980 and 2000, want to see in a bank.

“It's been very helpful to have focus groups at my fingertips,” says Sidhu. “My own insight and experience have been valuable to the team, given that I am in the sweet spot of the generation that we are targeting.”

Sidhu says Wyomissing, Pa.-based BankMobile, which officially launches in September, will let customers do anything on their mobile devices that they could do in a brick-and-mortar bank, including applying for a loan or mortgage. It promises user-friendly services with no hidden fees, higher rates and no minimum balances.

"Millennials throughout the country are overburdened with debt," says Sidhu. “That’s why our offering is so appealing.”

While BankMobile's initial target customer will be millennials, the company plans to offer products that also will appeal to other segments of the population, especially the vast numbers of those who do not bank at brick-and-mortar financial institutions.

The bank’s research indicates that more than 50 percent of households in the U.S. have not visited a bank branch over the past year, and about 25 percent of the U.S. population is "unbanked" (those who do not have a bank account) or "under-banked" (those with a bank account who also rely heavily on check-cashing outlets or pay-day lenders). Meantime, the widespread adoption of smart phones for use in mobile banking is expected to reach 50 percent in 2016, versus 15 percent today.